Housing Works Bookstore Cafe

What Housing Works Bookstore Cafe does

Housing Works Bookstore Cafe is an iconic used bookstore and café located at 126 Crosby Street in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It operates as a social enterprise of Housing Works Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1990 out of the AIDS crisis to provide housing, healthcare, advocacy, and job training to homeless and low-income New Yorkers living with or at risk of HIV/AIDS. Beyond traditional book sales and food/beverage service, the venue is rented for weddings, corporate meetings, holiday parties, and other private events, generating venue rental fees that, along with retail revenue, fund Housing Works' mission-critical services.

The Bookstore Cafe sits within a broader Housing Works portfolio that includes 9 Thrift Shops across Manhattan and Brooklyn, 5 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), supportive housing programs, advocacy offices in NYC, Albany, Washington D.C., Haiti, and Puerto Rico, a harm reduction program (Intercambios) in Puerto Rico, and the first-to-market adult-use cannabis dispensary in New York State. The Bookstore Cafe also serves as a structured employment site for clients who complete Housing Works' job training program, integrating workforce development into the operating model. There are no proprietary technology platforms; the cafe uses standard point-of-sale and event booking inquiry workflows via housingworks.org.

Revenue is generated through multiple streams: book and café sales, quote-based private event rentals, individual donations, and membership programs, all of which are reinvested into Housing Works' nonprofit mission. Distribution is concentrated at the single SoHo physical location with supplementary e-commerce via shop.housingworks.org and online donation processing through giving.classy.org. Customer segments include socially conscious consumers, event planners, couples seeking distinctive wedding venues, and job training program graduates.

Name

Housing Works Bookstore Cafe

Legal name

Housing Works Inc.

Website

https://housingworks.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Housing Works Bookstore Cafe is a SoHo used bookstore and café that operates as a social enterprise of Housing Works Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, generating retail and event rental revenue to fund HIV/AIDS housing, healthcare, and job training services for low-income New Yorkers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Bookstore Cafe Sales: The Bookstore Cafe generates revenue through book sales and food/beverage service. As part of Housing Works' social enterprise model, these profits directly fund the organization's mission of providing housing, healthcare, and services to homeless and low-income New Yorkers living with HIV/AIDS.
2. Venue Rental (Weddings & Private Events): The Bookstore Cafe serves as an event venue available for private rentals including weddings, holiday parties, and corporate meetings. Located in SoHo with unique historic features including mahogany bookshelves and spiral staircases.
3. Donations: Individual donations support the organization's lifesaving services. Donations to Thrift Shops or Bookstore Cafe help keep businesses running and continue to fund the mission. Membership programs provide additional support with benefits in return.
4. Social Enterprise Cross-Subsidy: Housing Works pioneered the concept of social enterprise where businesses (Thrift Shops, Bookstore Cafe, cannabis dispensary) generate unrestricted revenue that funds innovative public health interventions and core mission services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Housing Works Bookstore Cafe is an iconic used bookstore and café bar located at 126 Crosby Street in SoHo, New York City. It operates as a social enterprise within the Housing Works nonprofit, selling used books and serving food and beverages, while also functioning as a private event venue for weddings, corporate meetings, and holiday parties. All profits directly fund Housing Works' mission of providing housing, healthcare, and services to homeless and low-income New Yorkers living with HIV/AIDS.

Product overview

Housing Works Bookstore Cafe is a social enterprise nonprofit organization comprising multiple businesses and services unified by a mission to end homelessness and AIDS. The core retail enterprises include the Bookstore Cafe (an iconic SoHo used bookstore and bar venue), nine Thrift Shops, and New York's first adult-use cannabis dispensary—all generating crucial unrestricted revenue. Supporting services include five FQHC healthcare centers providing integrated primary care, mental health, HIV/AIDS treatment, harm reduction, and supportive services; deeply affordable supportive housing; and relentless grassroots advocacy with international offices. The Bookstore Cafe serves both as a retail operation and unique event venue for weddings and corporate gatherings. The portfolio operates on a social enterprise model where business profits directly fund the parent not-for-profit's lifesaving services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Housing Works Bookstore Cafe

Quantifiable outcome

• Provided comprehensive services to over 30,000 homeless and low-income New Yorkers since 1990

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• ChapterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChapter is a Medicare navigation partner providing licensed Medicare advisors who offer free consultations to review health needs, prescriptions, and budgets to help find the right coverage. Partnership supports Housing Works Community Healthcare patients with Medicare enrollment assistance.
• WeddingWireminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWedding venue listing platform where the Bookstore Cafe is featured. The venue received WeddingWire Couples' Choice Award 2020.
• The KnotminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWedding venue listing platform featuring positive couple reviews for the Bookstore Cafe.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• McNally Jackson Books: Independent NYC bookstore with multiple locations including a SoHo store featuring a cafe and extensive literary events programming. Directly comparable as an independent bookstore-cafe-event venue serving similar NYC literary and socially conscious customers.
• Strand Bookstore: Iconic independent bookstore in NYC's East Village famous for rare books, '18 miles of books' inventory, and hosting literary events. Highly comparable to Housing Works Bookstore Cafe as a NYC independent bookstore landmark with cultural cachet and event programming.
• Shakespeare and Company Books: Legendary Paris-based English-language bookstore with cafe and historic literary heritage. Comparable as a destination bookstore-cafe with strong tourist appeal, literary community programming, and iconic cultural positioning similar to Housing Works' SoHo institution status.
• Powell's City of Books: Portland-based independent bookstore (largest in the US) with attached cafe and regular literary events. Comparable as a destination independent bookstore-cafe with strong local cultural identity and event-driven customer engagement.

Broad incumbents

• Salvation Army Family Stores: Network of nonprofit thrift and retail stores operated by The Salvation Army funding social services. Comparable as nonprofit retail social enterprise generating unrestricted revenue to fund broader social mission services.
• Barnes & Noble: Largest US bookstore chain operating hundreds of superstores with attached cafes and event programming. Comparable as bookstore-cafe-event venue operator serving similar book buyer customers, though at much larger scale and lacking the social enterprise dimension.
• Goodwill Industries International: Largest US nonprofit social enterprise retail operator with thousands of thrift stores funding job training programs. Comparable as nonprofit retail social enterprise with mission-driven employment model and similar cross-subsidy funding structure.

Others

• Housing Works Thrift Shops: Nine thrift shop locations operated by Housing Works Inc. as social enterprises funding the same mission. Sibling nonprofit retail operations sharing brand, mission, and cross-subsidy model with the Bookstore Cafe.

Emerging players

• Greenlight Bookstore: Independent Brooklyn bookstore with two locations hosting author events and community programming. Comparable as a NYC-area independent bookstore with event-driven model, though smaller scale and lacking the cafe component.
• The Ripped Bodice: Brooklyn-based independent bookstore specializing in romance literature with curated inventory and events. Comparable as a niche NYC independent bookstore with event programming and similar socially conscious customer base.

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/housingworks
• Facebookfacebook.com/15899774668
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/housing-works
• Instagraminstagram.com/housingworks

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Housing Works Bookstore Cafe